Benjamin j



(No Model.)-

B. J. STURTBVANT.

SEAL.

Patented July 24, 1894.,

INVENTOH WITNESSES.-

m w 6 l MAC A TTOHNE YS.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN J. STURTEVANT, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

SEAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 523,382, dated July 24, 1894.

Application filedSeptember 20, 1893. Serial No. 485,976. (No model.)

To all whom it may cancer-m Be it known that I, BENJAMIN J. STURTE- VANT, of St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and Improved Seal, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The invention is an improved tag-seal for railway car doors.

The object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved seal, which is simple and durable in construction, and arranged to prevent unauthorized persons from tampering with the hook in the hollow tag, to open the seal.

The invention consists of a tag made of frangible material and formed with a recess into which opens a slot, and a spring hook adapted to be drawn into the said recess and formed at one end with an extension to fill the said slot.

The invention also consists of certain parts and details, and combinations of the same, as will be hereinafter described and then pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improvement as applied. Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation of the same on the line 2--2 of Fig. 4. Fig. 3 is an enlarged inverted plan view of the improvement; and Fig.4 is a sectional plan view of the same on the line 4- of Fig. 2.

The improved seal is provided with a strip or band A, of tin or other suitable naterial doubled up as shown .in Figs. 1 and 2 and formed at its ends with apertures A, adapted to be engaged by a spring hook B, arranged to pass into a recess 0 formed in a tag 0, made of clay or other suitable material and marked on one or all of its sides with characters appropriate to the purpose for which the seal is intended, (see Fig.1.)

The spring hook B is approximately U- shaped and has one of its members B bent outward and pointed to engage one side of the wall of the recess 0, as plainly illustrated in Fig. 2. The shank B of the hook B is formed with a curved extension 13 having its outer end B arranged horizontally of a length corresponding to the width of the recess 0. The recess 0 is preferably in the shape of a .cross, as is plainly illustrated in Fig. 3, and

the inner end of the said recess terminates in 5 5 a slot C extending clear through the other end of the tag and of a size to admitthe dou-' bled up strip A, but to prevent the passage of the hook B, as will be understood by reference to Fig. 2.

The seal is used as follows: The strip A is first passed through the parts to be locked and if used on a car door, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, is passed through the staples D, D secured to the door E and the door frame E respectively. The strip A is then bent upon itself and the ends are passed through the slot 0 and recess 0 of the tag 0, after which the hook B is engaged with the apertures A of the strip A as illustrated in Fig. 1. The operator then moves the tag 0 outward on the strip A to cause the tag to pass over the hook B, thereby causing the member B to compress slightly in the recess 0 and to finally seat itself in the opposing wall of the recess, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The extension B of the hook B fills part of the recess 0 and the horizontal end B completely prevents access to the hook so as to prevent unauthorized persons from tamper- 8o ing with the hook to open the seal.

It is understood that the pointed member B embeds itself in the soft material of the tag and prevents the latter from being slipped inward on the strip A.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent-- l. A seal comprising the frangible hollow tag open at its lower end and having a slot 0 in its upper end communicating with its recessed interior, a strip or band adapted to be passed through the recess and slot from the lower end of the tag, and a self locking fastening device for the lower end of the strip 5 and adapted to be drawn into the tag through the lower open end thereof by the said strip, the said device being formed with an extension to seal part of the said recess to prevent access to the said device, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a seal, the combination with a frangi- 5 ble hollow tag, and a strip or band adapted to be passed through said tag, of the spring hook for engaging said strip or band and adapted to be drawn within said tag, the said hook having a pointed member to engage the wall of the tag and a curved extension hav- :0 ing a straight end, substantially as shown and described.

BENJAMIN J. S'IURTEVAN'I. Witnesses:

THEO. MILLEN, L. B. ALLEN. 

